Defence's CSD suspends sale of Patanjali's Amla Juice

The sales have been suspended after a state-laboratory test declared the product unfit for consumption. Amla juice was one of Patanjali Ayurved’s first consumer launches.Sagar Malviya | ET Bureau | April 24, 2017, 07:44 IST

MUMBAI: The canteen stores department (CSD), the retailing platform for India’s defence forces, has suspended the sale of Patanjali Ayurved’s amla juice after receiving an adverse state-laboratory test report on the product that had helped establish the company’s credentials in the consumer business.

The CSD, in a letter dated April 3, 2017, asked all depots to make debit notes for their existing stock so that the product can be returned. Amla juice was one of Patanjali Ayurved’s first consumer launches, and its success helped the company enter more than two-dozen categories, underpinned by advertising support that claimed the company offered healthier alternatives to products sold by multinationals.

“The batch was tested at the Central Food Lab in Kolkata and was declared unfit for consumption. Patanjali has withdrawn amla juice from all army canteens,” said two officials privy to the development.

CSD and Patanjali Ayurved did not respond to ET’s e-mail queries. The referral government laboratory in Kolkata is the same agency that detected lead levels above permissible limits, and the presence of MSG in the samples of NestleMaggi noodles two years ago. The test report later caused consumer backlash, prompting Nestle to withdraw the brand across India, and file a legal petition to seek a judicial review on the order by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).

The CSD’s retail outlets sell 5,300 products ranging from biscuits and beer to shampoos and cars to 12 million consumers — the serving personnel of the army, navy and the air force, ex-servicemen, and their families. Started in 1948, it is managed by the Ministry of Defence and comprises of 3,901 unit-run canteens, and 34 depots. For most consumer product companies, CSD accounts for 5-7% of their total volume sales.

This is not the first instance of the `5,000-crore Patanjali Ayurved running into trouble with the regulators over its claims. In the past, it has been pulled up for selling noodles and pasta without the relevant licences. Last year, FSSAI directed its Central Licensing Authority to issue a showcause notice to Patanjali over its edible-oil advertisements that were allegedly misleading.